Security Levels

PENOBSCOT BAY Ship's History: Cutter Awards and Recognition

Formal awards, organizational recognition, and outside
letters of appreciation earned by the cutter and its crew

Over her quarter-century of distinguished service, PENOBSCOT BAY and her
crew have earned many formal awards and recognition for their operational
accomplishments and community relations efforts.

Many of the citations are
featured here in this section of the Ship's History Archive; click each
thumbnail image to view the full-size document. The citations are available
as PDF files; link here
to download the necessary plug-in if you do not have it.

Like
individual personnel in the U.S. military, the cutter "wears" her own
collection of ribbons and awards on a "ribbon bar" affixed to either side of
the ship's pilothouse (see image at right, courtesy
Craig Ruttle). This ribbon bar is
updated when the ship earns a new honor or marks a new milestone in her
service life. The insignia used on the ship's ribbon bars are the same as
those worn on ribbons by individual members of the Coast Guard. For general
information on Coast Guard awards and honors, including those featured
below, consult the Coast Guard
Medals
and Awards Manual, COMDTINST M1650.25 (series).

If you are a former
PENOBSCOT BAY sailor or simply a Coast Guard icebreaker buff in possession
of additional award citations that are not featured here, please
contact us so that we might
republish them.

7
September 2004: Coast Guard Meritorious Unit Commendation

Awarded to units of the First Coast Guard District for icebreaking
efforts from December 2003 to March 2004, during an unusually severe winter
season that saw ice formation in New York's Lower Bay, Buzzards Bay, and
around Nantucket.

2
August 2005: Coast Guard Meritorious Team Commendation

Awarded to members of PENOBSCOT BAY's Engineering Department for "an
intense period of naval engineering" from 30 March 2005 to 30 April 2005.
During the period, the team successfully upgraded one of the cutter's main
diesel engines and effected repairs to the other engine and to both of the
ship's service diesel generators.

3
January 2006: Coast Guard Unit Commendation

Awarded to Coast Guard Activities New York (PENOBSCOT BAY's parent
command; now Sector New York) and its subunits for successful execution of
sustained maritime security operations during two periods of heightened
security in 2003 and 2004.

5 January 2009: Special Operations Service Ribbon

PENOBSCOT BAY earned all three awards for its icebreaking efforts
following a successful deployment in 2008 to assist the Canadian Coast Guard
in opening the St. Lawrence Seaway for the spring shipping season.

The
Meritorious Unit Commendation was presented to PENOBSCOT BAY by Rear Admiral
Timothy Sullivan, Commander, First Coast Guard District. The
deployment was the first ever by a First District icebreaker to specifically
assist the Canadian Coast Guard in opening the Seaway. The deployment also
marked the first time a U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker was placed under the
tactical control of the Canadian government.

In
addition to the formal recognition it received in the award above, PENOBSCOT
BAY received the First District Award for Mission Excellence for its
operational accomplishments during the quarter (January-March 2008). The
award is given quarterly by the District Commander and Master Chief to one
unit within the First Coast Guard District in recognition of exceptional
operational success. The citation recognizes PENOBSCOT BAY for completing
several other missions in addition to the icebreaking deployment. The
citation (to the cutter and her crew) reads in part, "You have demonstrated
extraordinary dedication and you strengthened a long tradition of
international cooperation between Canada and the United States."

The
cutter (and all crewmembers who were assigned to her during the deployment)
were also authorized to wear Coast Guard's Special Operations Service
Ribbon. Vice Admiral R. J. Papp, Commander, Atlantic Area, authorized the
wearing of the ribbon by all units who participated in icebreaking
operations on the Great Lakes during the unusually severe winter of
2007-2008.

WEBMASTER's NOTE: Images from the deployment are available in
five annotated galleries on our
Facebook.com fan site. (Once on the site, choose the "Photos" section.)
Media coverage the cutter earned following the operation is
available here in the
Media Center section of our site.

20
August 2008: Coast Guard Meritorious Team Commendation

Awarded to more than 25 Sector New York personnel, including seven from
the PENOBSCOT BAY, who planned and executed a highly successful "Coast Guard
Day" Partnership in Education event at Highland Avenue Middle School in
Midland Park, New Jersey. The event was planned in large part by PENOBSCOT
BAY's sister cutter, the
STURGEON BAY.

18
February 2009: Coast Guard Unit Commendation

Awarded to Sector New York and its subunits for the successful rescue on
15 January 2009 of 155 passengers aboard US Airways flight 1549 after the
plane crash-landed in the Hudson River.

Download Plug-Ins: Some of the links on this page require a plug-in to view them. Links to the plug-ins are available below.
Adobe Acrobat Reader (PDF)